Congressional leaders, including House Financial Services Committee (HFSC) Chairman French Hill, have sent a letter to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) on February 20, recommending clarifications to the agency's stance on digital asset regulations.
According to the letter addressed to FDIC Acting Chairman Travis Hill, Representative French Hill and other signees expressed appreciation for recent steps taken by the FDIC to increase transparency and accountability regarding past actions that negatively impacted the U.S. digital asset industry. The letter indicates that under the previous administration, the FDIC pressured banks to deny services to digital asset firms. The Congressmen voiced concerns that without changes, "disfavored industries" could face "debanking" in the future.
The Congressmen emphasized that to prevent a recurrence of debanking practices targeting the digital asset industry, the FDIC should stop issuing "verbal-only" guidance. Instead, they recommended that all banking supervisory guidance be written and publicly disclosed. They also suggested that when customers' bank accounts are closed, a clear explanation should be provided. Furthermore, they advocated for uniform application of supervisory guidance across all institutions without considering "reputational risk" as a factor.
In addition to French Hill, HFSC Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Chairman Dan Meuser, HFSC Subcommittee on Financial Institutions Chairman Andy Barr, and HFSC Subcommittee on Digital Assets, Financial Technology, and Artificial Intelligence Chairman Bryan Steil signed the letter.
The Alternative Investment Management Association (AIMA) conducted a survey of 160 crypto hedge fund firms and found that 75% reported difficulties in accessing or expanding banking services for their funds. Of those alerted about potential termination of their banking relationship, 98% said they were not given any clear reason for termination. AIMA referred to this pattern of debanking in the U.S. crypto industry as "Operation Chokepoint 2.0."
The HFSC has jurisdiction over monetary policy, international monetary organizations, combating terrorist financing, and issues related to the banking system. It also oversees entities such as the FDIC, Federal Reserve Board, and Treasury Department.
